AFI to appoint first High Performance Director for athletes since 2015
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After the last High-Performance Director left his post back in October 2015, the Athletic Federation of India is en route to appoint another one in Germany’s Volker Herrmann ahead of Tokyo Olympics. Herrmann’s job would be to look after coaches, pick training places and decide meets.
The last time India had a High-Performance Director to plan and strategise was prior to the Rio Olympics in American Derek Boosey, a 1968 Mexico City Olympian. Appointed in October 2015, Boosey had resigned seven months into his job. Now, AFI President Adille Sumariwala has revealed that 38-year-old Hermann, who was highly recommended by the German Athletics Federation, would take the vacant position.
“The government has cleared the appointment of High Performance Director and Herrmann will join soon. He is a highly qualified person and his tenure is for the Olympic cycle,” Sumariwalla said, reported PTI.
“His job is more to do with planning, strategising, looking after the technical aspect, studying the data, analysing the performance of the athletes and dealing with sports science, etc. He will not deal much with day to day operational aspects which will be done by the chief coach,” the AFI president said.
As per Sumariwalla, Hermann would have a number of responsibilities upon his shoulders that would include looking after the coaches, picking the best training places for athletes and the best meets for them to participate.
“He became an assistant coach at the age of 17 and he is an authority in athletes’ fitness and a top-class sprint coach,” Sumariwalla added.
A Level A sprint coach license (top athletics license in Germany) holder, Herrmann has been a High-Performance Sports Consultant with his last job being a Technical Director of Singapore from April 2017 to December 2018. He was also a head coach/High-Performance Manager at the Olympic Training Center in Cologne, Germany from 2010 to 2013.
